Kiss of Death: For the Murderously Inclined Romantic

December 1 is Kiss of Death day! Yeah, that’s how awesome romantic suspense is as a genre – it gets its own day. To celebrate, I’d like to talk about the genre a little and deliver a call to action to all you would-be novelists.

I write romantic suspense because I love mystery, and I’m a sucker for romance. Both are timeless. Both make the world go round.

Both make you think.

Guts. Guts, Guts, Guts.

Guts. The word has been immortalized in our household by my nine-year old daughter who thinks it’s one of the most righteous words in her vocabulary. It’s her version of a four-letter word. Damn, but I love her.

And really, she has a point.

What a powerfully visceral word. It’s a noun, but boy is it cool to verb. When something devastates me, there’s nothing quite like using the Brit expression, “This guts me” or “I was gutted.”

Yeah, right now, guts is pretty much my favorite word. And a battle-girding word for anyone with a big ass dream.

How Bad Do You Want It?

Today I’m addressing dreams. YOUR dreams. Not the night version of course, but the “what-I’d-love-to-achieve-because-it-would-kick-ass” kind of dreaming. Have you identified one? More than one? Have you gone the next step and morphed those dreams into goals? If not, why not? If you have, but those goals are languishing under the weight of your daily to-do list, what are you going to do about it?

Ok, no more questions. Let’s take a good look at your life and figure out what’s standing in your way.

Idealism vs. Realism? I’ll take both.

I’m not much of a gambling woman, but I’d wager a guess that most people read to be carried away. To ditch bills, housework, and all the other stresses of our everyday world to live vicariously through a fictional character’s much more dramatic, exciting and yes, romantic life. Who wouldn’t want to be Eve Dallas, Cinderella or Scarlet O’Hara for a day (or more)?

Music for Stripping

“After silence, that which comes nearest to expressing the inexpressible is music.” ~ Aldous Huxley

Music is truly universal. Even if we don’t like a particular piece of music or understand the language, we intuitively understand its mood—what it’s trying to communicate via its unique combination of notes, rhythms, and beats.

Today, for fun, I wanna focus on music that puts us in a sexy mood, or more to the point (pun intended), I’m going to list my top 10 “slicked-up bodies sliding in a hot cabana in the tropics” kind of music. You know, just to give you some inspiration for seducing your partner setting up a really hot scene in your book.

Getting to Know Your Cast

So, I’ve started plotting my next manuscript and guess what… I know the plot line, I know the female lead like she’s my shadow, but…I’m stuck on the male lead. If this has ever happened to you, you feel my pain. Who *is* he? What’s he all about? I know what he wants, but I don’t know why. He’s driving me crazy because he’s playing hard to get. What’s a writer to do?

3 Takeaways from RWA National

This was only my second RWA conference, so I still had a little of that “holy crap” demeanor as I mingled with romance writers from all over the world. But even so, this time it was more about the networking for me. The workshops were awesome, of course, but really, it was the people who made the experience special. I volunteered for several events, and that was a fantastic experience. In fact, it solidified the 3 most important lessons I left NYC with.

Engaged Idea Mining – Part 2

Last week, I challenged you to get out there and mine some writing ideas via engagement, or more specifically, by asking questions in a variety of situations. This is one way to get beyond the observational, or passive, method of generating ideas. So this week, I want to talk about engagement via doing. In other words, the whole Nike nine-yards.

Engaged Idea Mining – Part 1

To the vast surprise of non-writers, most word people don’t have a problem coming up with story ideas, though I’d wager that most of those ideas come via observational, or passive, sources (reading, watching, overhearing, etc.). Not a single thing wrong with that, of course. But I challenge you to take it a step further. Get out there and mine some ideas via engagement. It’s empowering, invigorating, and a hell of a balance for a writer’s solitary, sedentary lifestyle. Part one of this topic addresses engagement in terms of asking questions. Sound boring? I beg to differ…

KABOoM – Spymaster’s Lady by Joanna Bourne

Hi, my name is Misty, and I’m a book slut.  I’ll read anything in just about any genre. The thing is, the story’s gotta get to me in about ten pages. Fickle, I know! I’m not really that hard to please, though, especially if it’s romance. And boy oh boy, did I find a keeper recently. So much so that it inspired me to start this new feature: KABOoM, aka: Kick Ass Book of the Moment. Read on for a brief look at why I LOVE Joanna Bourne’s historical debut, The Spymaster’s Lady—AND—for Jo’s awesomely insightful response to my one question for her.